College Basketball Power Rankings: Baylor Remains at the Top (Week of January 10)
By Reed Wallach
The college basketball season is about to hit its busy season with conference play starting across the country on a nightly basis. While we are still sifting through the contenders at the top of the rankings, sports bettors always have an eye on the NCAA Tournament and some valuable bets to make in the Futures market.
Every week here at BetSided, we will be power ranking the top 25 teams relative to their futures odds.
Here's how things stand as conference play enters full swing. All odds listed are via WynnBET.
Tier 1: Familiar Names Top the Nation
1. Baylor (+1000)
Baylor remains untouchable, rounding into form after a sluggish first half to come back and cover a 9.5-point spread on the road against TCU.
The Bears are fourth in offensive efficiency and seventh on defense while rebounding 39% of their misses, per KenPom. This team is versatile on both sides of the floor and dominating opponents.
They are home twice this week against a pair of physical Big 12 foes in Texas Tech and Oklahoma State, who are each off of wins against Kansas and Texas, respectively.
2. Gonzaga (+600)
The Zags are about to hit the quiet part of their schedule, but they will remain inside the top 5 with the second best offense and an emerging interior defense around Chet Holmgren (holding opponents to a bottom five two-point percentage).
Gonzaga hosts BYU on Thursday in a marquee matchup.
2. Elite Teams
3. Arizona (+1200)
4. Auburn (+2000)
Make that 11 straight Auburn, who took care of business against Florida at home as they continue to look the part of a Final Four contender.
The team is top 20 in KenPom's efficiency metrics, but face two tough games this week on the road against Alabama and a mercurial Ole Miss.
5. UCLA (+2000)
UCLA returned from a near month long pause to two wins over Cal State Long Beach and Cal.
The Bruins still remain in this category with elite ball handling and a sharp shooter in Johnny Juzang, but PAC-12 play will tell us a ton after the club missed so much time due to COVID-19 Protocols.
6. Houston (+3500)
7. Duke (+800)
Duke was upset at home by Miami, 76-74, in a game that exposed some of the Blue Devils' flaws.
The team is sloppy with the ball at times and the offense relies too heavily on isolation basketball to generate offense. The team is loaded with talent, but sometimes go through dry spells as they rely on hero ball with Paolo Banchero.
The Blue Devils are outside the top 100 in turnover percentage this season and must clean that up if they want to enter the National Championship conversation.
8. Kansas (+1000)
9. Kentucky (+2000)
10. Purdue (+800)
In the grand scheme of things this may be an overreaction, but this Purdue team has already hit a wall after coming out of the gates hot to start the year.
While the team is No. 1 in offensive efficiency, they struggle on the defensive end as the tandem of Trevion Williams and Zach Eddey can't help the Purdue wing defenders to stop offenses. Overall, the team is 67th in defensive efficiency.
The team was beat by a one-man Wisconsin show in Johnny Davis and had to scrap by Penn State on the road.
There's work to be done in West Lafayette.
Tier 3: Knocking on the Door
11. Villanova (+1800)
12. LSU (+4000)
13. Wisconsin (+10000)
National Player of the Year front runner Johnny Davis (+500) was sensational leading the Badgers over Purdue on the road, scoring 37 of the team's 74 points.
Davis is 13th in the country usage rate and top 10 in terms of percentage of shots, taking over a third of Wisconsin's field goal attempts.
Wisconsin is home for Ohio State on Thursday.
14. Illinois (+2000)
15. USC (+5000)
USC grabbed an impressive win at Cal on Thursday in their first game since December 18th, moving to 13-0 on the year.
The team has played a soft schedule to date, but they are top 25 on both sides of the ball, per KenPom and have talent on the roster for a deep playoff run in the likes of Isaiah Mobley and Boogie Ellis.
Don't sleep on the Trojans come March.
16. Michigan State (+3000)
17. Texas Tech (+5000)
18. Ohio State (+2500)
19. Alabama (+2500)
Alabama dropped one on the road to below .500 Missouri, a tough pill to swallow given that the SEC appears to be the toughest conference in the country.
There's a ton of talent on this roster, apparent in their road victory against Florida, but maybe the team was looking ahead to Tuesday night matchup at home for 15-1 Auburn.
The Crimson Tide can re-enter the top 10 if they knock off Auburn at home and get back on track.
20. Tennessee (+2500)
Tier 4: Best of the Rest
21. Texas Tech (+5000)
Texas Tech almost had a huge week, but couldn't hit a shot against Iowa State, losing 51-47 to the Cyclones.
However, the team looked much better on the offensive end against Kansas, winning 75-67 at home. The Red Raiders are mediocre on offense overall, but are elite on defense still despite losing coach Chris Beard.
The team is 60th in offensive efficiency but top five on the defensive side of the ball.
TTU travels to Waco to face Baylor on Tuesday night.
22. Xavier (+5000)
Keep your eye on Xavier, who is a dark horse to win the Big East, coming off a COVID-19 pause to throttle Butler, 87-72 on the road.
The Musketeers are home for Villanova on Wednesday in hopes of getting revenge for a December lost to the Wildcats on the road.
23. Iowa State (+10000)
24. BYU (+7500)
25. Texas (+2000)
I will keep Texas in the rankings, but I'm still not sure what to make of this team, who has still not figured out a sound offensive system.
Given the dearth of weapons first year head coach Chris Beard brought with him through the transfer portal, I had a feeling this would take a while, but the team plays at the third slowest pace in the country which puts a ton of pressure on their defense.
The Longhorns shoot about 33% from beyond the arc, but have a glaringly low Rim & 3 Rate, per ShotQuality, which assesses the shot profile of each team (shots at the rim and 3s, efficient shots by all accounts). Beard's club is 243rd in that metric.
There's time for the talented Longhorns to round into form, but the team has beat one team inside KenPom's top 60 this season and lost to 3.
Honorable Mention: Connecticut, Seton Hall, Loyola-Chicago